u/muchomangocanman

I’m from here too and it’s been a rough one especially since around Fourth of July when the storms have really ramped up. I find it funny how much Mark misses LA, compared to some of the other Barstool people who moved to Chicago from NYC. Nick, KB, Ebo, Connor, Big T, etc, all seem to enjoy Chicago a lot more than NYC, at least based on the way you hear them talk about it. Soon enough it will be shitty and cold again here though. At least we have Octigley around the corner. Family

Article from June 1 in the Patch by Lauren Traut

NEW LENOX, IL — An employee at Walgreens in New Lenox faces theft and drug charges after police said she allegedly took hundreds of Xanax pills from the store with the intent to sell them, according to New Lenox police reports.
New Lenox police were called to the Walgreens store, 430 S. Schoolhouse Road, on May 29 for a report of a theft. An employee told police that another employee, identified as Jada Stewart, 29, of Park Forest, had taken without authorization 600 Xanax pills with the intention of selling them. The pills were valued at $1,234, according to police reports.
Stewart was taken into custody and transported to the New Lenox Police Department, where she was charged with theft and possession of a controlled substance.
She was processed and released.

https://patch.com/illinois/newlenox/walgreens-employee-stole-hundreds-xanax-pills-store-sell-them-herself-nlpd

Article about the incident in the Sun Times from May 2025 by Tom Schuba:

A Chicago police officer and former University of Illinois quarterback was taken into custody Wednesday after he was allegedly caught stealing sports memorabilia from a store in Evergreen Park.
Christopher Pazan, 41, was arrested around 3 p.m. after he swiped roughly $300 worth of baseball cards from the Meijer superstore at 9200 S. Western Ave., according to Evergreen Park Police Sgt. Victor Watts.
A security guard had watched on video as Pazan tucked the cards into a yard waste bag, Watts said. Pazan paid for the bag, but not the cards.
A Chicago police spokesperson said Pazan has now been relieved of his policing powers. He had been assigned to the Morgan Park District and detailed to the central investigations division, which investigates arson, financial crimes, major crashes and car thefts.
Pazan’s attorney didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. Pazan couldn’t be reached.
He broke records playing quarterback at Brother Rice High School in Mount Greenwood, becoming an All-American and a hot college prospect. His career at the University of Illinois was far less illustrious, though he started a handful of games, according to a biography on the school’s website.
He later coached at Illinois and St. Joseph’s College before joining the Chicago Police Department in 2015.
“I just felt as if I wanted something more; to do something more and to serve in a different capacity,” he previously told the Chicago Tribune.
Pazan has also played for the Chicago Enforcers, a football team of Chicago cops and other police officers who compete in a league for law enforcement officials.
He earns an annual salary of $111,804, not including overtime pay, according to city payroll records. But he has recently faced personal strife and financial hardships.
He’s in the midst of a divorce and was scheduled to appear at a hearing on Wednesday. His initial attorney in the case, Tania K. Harvey, has asked the court to force Pazan to pay $5,876.84 she says her firm is owed.
His current lawyers have said he’s refinancing the mortgage on his Beverly home to cover “the expense of attorney’s fees and the ultimate settlement of the case.”
Fifth Third Bank sued Pazan last August in an effort to recoup $4,019.18 he owed after taking out an installment loan, court records show. A process server couldn’t locate him to give him the lawsuit, and the case was dismissed in February.
JPMorgan Chase previously sued Pazan in September 2022, looking to collect $15,324.94 he owed. He agreed to pay $12,500 and did so by June 2024, records show.
Police applicants who have significant debts are often rejected from even entering the training academy, city records show. The screening is aimed at filtering out would-be recruits who may be prone to corruption or financial manipulation.
Pazan faces a misdemeanor count of retail theft, Watts said. His first court hearing was scheduled for June 23 in Bridgeview.

https://chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdogs/2025/05/29/chicago-police-arrest-crime-university-of-illinois-uofi-quarterback-brother-rice-chris-pazan

Three free World Cup watch parties are planned at RiverEdge Park in Aurora, with the first event set for Tuesday evening, organizers said.
The watch parties, sponsored by the city of Aurora and RiverEdge Park, will be held for the Mexico vs. Ecuador match at 8 p.m. Tuesday, with gates opening at 6 p.m.; for the game between the U.S. and Bosnia and Herzegovina at 7 p.m. Wednesday, with gates opening at 5 p.m.; and for the World Cup final at 2 p.m. Sunday, July 19, with gates opening at noon.
Admission to RiverEdge Park, at 360 N. Broadway in downtown Aurora, will be free and World Cup soccer fans are invited to “bring blankets and bag chairs and watch the knockout round action live on the big screen,” according to RiverEdge Park officials.
There are no permanent seats in the park, officials noted.
Jon Zaghloul, director of communications for the city of Aurora, called the viewing parties “a really exciting initiative that the city and the Aurora Civic Center Authority have collaborated on.”
“The fact that it’s free and the fact that the World Cup is ongoing right now, it’s really going to enhance peoples’ viewing experience,” he said. “The park is brand new and just reopened after significant renovations and so to be able to utilize this for a community event, to open up the park for free and invite people to come on in and watch multiple World Cup matches including the championship match, is really just an exciting opportunity to bring people downtown and allow them to check out the new park and be part of the community.”
Jim Jarvis, general manager for RiverEdge Park and also the chief marketing and programming officer for the Aurora Civic Center Authority, is excited about the upcoming watch parties.
“We talked to the city about it and said this is a great community event,” Jarvis said. “It’s free. It brings people of all different backgrounds together to take it in and that, first and foremost, is the coolest thing about doing something like this. You watch the World Cup and you see every walk of life watching in the different stadiums.”
Matches will be shown on the screens throughout the park, organizers said. Beverage pavilions will be open with alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks available for purchase. There will also be food trucks and the park’s concession stand will also be open, officials said.
Outside food is allowed in the park as well as coolers no larger than 12 inches by 12 inches by 12 inches. No alcohol or drinks of any kind can be brought into the park, except sealed water bottles, park officials said.
Entry for the viewing parties will be through Gates 2 and 4 at RiverEdge Park. Gate 2 is located across from the Post Office at 525 N. Broadway and the Aurora Transportation Center North End Parking Lot, official said. Gate 4 is located at the south end of the park near the pedestrian bridge across the Fox River.
For more information, go to www.paramountaurora.com/riveredge
David Sharos is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.